2021 has been a fascinating and overwhelming year for television. As Network television continues to become increasingly irrelevant (save for a show here and there) and more and more streamers pop up, trying to prove themselves in an oversaturated marketplace, there is simply too much television for any one person to watch. Particularly considering that I am not a TV critic (although I do have a Master's degree in Television Management, for what it's worth) I can only put my eyes where I decide to put them and when I have time to do so. Thus, this may be a limited view of what's actually available in the world of TV. 2021 was also a year of great change for us, as we entered it still very much in lockdown with more time to binge shows and eventually began to open the world back up as vaccines became available... the humor of this being that as I write this I am recovering from Covid though doing okay. Thank goodness for vaccines and boosters, truly.
Anyways... presented below are my 10 favorite shows of the year, some honorable mentions (all of which are also great... there's just a wealth of wonderful TV right now,) and a list of a handful of shows I didn't get around to see that I plan to when I have time. Naturally, this is just my opinion and I don't pretend to be presenting anything definitive. Let me know your thoughts and what some of your favorite shows are!
To See: The Underground Railroad, Yellowjackets, Dexter: New Blood, The Great, Station Eleven, Reservation Dogs, Girls5Eva, For All Mankind, and so many others I will sadly never have the time for.
Honorable Mentions: Evil, Loki, Superstore, What We Do in the Shadows, Mare of Easttown, Pose, Hacks, Midnight Mass, City of Ghosts, Mighty Ducks: Game Changers, Cobra Kai
10. Hawkeye (Disney+)
Perhaps the biggest surprise for me this year and one of the most pure fun shows I watched all year. I know that the finale left a sour taste for some... but not me. My least anticipated of the MCU shows this year ended up being the joyous Christmas buddy comedy I didn't know I needed, filled with well-shot action, warmth, an intriguing mystery, and a superstar performance from Hailee Steinfeld. I could see myself re-watching this every holiday season as its only 6 episodes.
9. Kevin Can F*ck Himself (AMC)
Coming off of her Emmy win for her hilarious work in Schitt's Creek, Annie Murphy is perfectly cast in this clever, thoughtful sitcom/drama hybrid created by Valerie Armstrong. Brilliantly using stylistic shifts and playing with the tropes of multi-camera sitcoms, the show dives into the psyche of a woman stuck in a mediocre life and a dead-end marriage. It never fails to surprise, make you cackle, and have you looking introspectively at your own life.
8. Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist (NBC and Roku)
Although lacking the narrative drive of Season 1, Season 2 of Zoey's was able to dive deeper into the lives of the supporting characters and deliver even better musical numbers. I like to describe this show as an empathy delivery service, and it never lost sight of that. It is often the most heartfelt show on network TV, other than perhaps This is Us. Plus, you know, singing and dancing! The show was sadly cancelled after season 2, however it was picked up for a delightful Christmas movie that aired on Roku TV.
7. Squid Game (Netflix)
Perhaps the story of the year in television, this Korean thriller came out of nowhere and hit the zeitgeist in a way few shows do. A thrilling, smartly constructed indictment of capitalism with terrific performances, extreme violence, and plenty of twists and turns to keep viewers captivated throughout the entire season.
6. Mythic Quest (Apple)
The other Apple comedy gets more love (more on that soon) but Mythic Quest's second season was as hilarious, warm, and formally audacious as its first... and even sharper in its overall construction. The highlight, much like the first season, is a flashback episode (cutely called Backstory!) that focuses on a supporting character's rise to celebrity and it is, taken on its own, one of the finest episodes of TV all year. The ensemble is so cohesive and winning. This is a smartly calibrated workplace sitcom that I wish more people watched, and I can't wait to see what happens next.
5. WandaVision (Disney+)
MCU's first foray into television under the Marvel Studios banner, WandaVision is a surprisingly thoughtful examination of grief and one of the most compelling mystery box shows we've seen in some time. Each week had me breathless waiting to find out what happens next, and using the various formats of the history of television (making for episodes that varied wildly in aesthetic and style, a delightful choice) was an exceedingly clever canvas for this show. Elisabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany are shattering and terrific and Teyonah Parris is a star on the rise, but it is Kathryn Hahn as nosy neighbor Agnes that nearly steals the whole show. The experience of watching this show early in 2021 reminded me of what it used to be like to wait in between episodes of Lost, the theorizing and the need to have "water-cooler" discussions -- and it was wonderful.
4. Ted Lasso (Apple)
Season 2 of Ted Lasso was met with some detractors, but for me it was perhaps even better than the first as it wasn't afraid to take risks and dive into the darker elements of the characters. Taken as a whole, this is a touching and at times painful look at anxiety and grief, but that is not to say the show was without its trademark charm and optimism. The Christmas episode (Carol of the Bells) is an instant holiday classic, for example, and new character romances and pairings were simply adorable. Beard After Hours, an audacious riff on the classic Scorsese film After Hours, that barely feels like an episode of this show as we know it, was one of my favorites of the year. The cast continues to be one of the finest on TV, and I'd argue they had even richer material and more depths to dig into this year.
3. The White Lotus (HBO)
Written and Directed by the great Mike White and filmed during the heart of the pandemic by renting an entire resort and safely locking everyone into that resort to film the entire show, The White Lotus is a brilliant satire poking scathing fun at wealthy white tourists, a fun mystery, and a hilarious character drama wherein every week the viewer has to decide which character is more despicable. This may not be everyone's cup of tea, but Mike White and I have always seen eye to eye and this is some of his finest work yet. Jennifer Coolidge is the MVP, but the entire cast, including Connie Britton, Steve Zahn, and an outrageously delicious turn from Murray Bartlett are phenomenal.
2. Succession (HBO)
Season 2 of Succession came to an end in October of 2019 with one of my favorite season finales ever, and it was a long, long wait for season 3. Expectations were high, and somehow the show surpassed them. In a normal year this would easily have been my favorite show of the year, but... more on that soon. Succession simply gets richer, smarter, more devious, and more darkly hilarious with each season. The cast is the best on TV, always finding new angles and depths to explore, new comic heights to reach. They are matched by the writing, which uses such remarkable wordplay and language that it reminds me of what David Milch used to do with Deadwood. I don't want to give anything away other than to say the season is a glorious build to a breathtakingly brilliant finale that was even more surprising and delicious than the season 2 finale. I don't know how much more gas creator Jesse Armstrong and his team will have in store for us, but I'm in for every single episode. This is already an all-timer.
1. Only Murders in the Building (Hulu)
Hey, Maxwell. Let's dive into your head and create a television program perfectly calibrated to each and every one of your interests. Two of your all-time favorite comedic actors delivering some of the finest works of their career and getting to play rich, hilarious characters and not just stock archetypes for laughs? A beautifully executed mystery that builds throughout the season and reminded me of some of my favorite season-long murder mystery television in its eventual complexity and amount of clues? A love letter to my beautiful New York and an ensemble filled with Broadway actors and NY greats such as Jackie Hoffman, Jayne Houdyshell, Tina Fey, and Nathan Lane? A whimsical, delightful score by Siddhartha Khosla? And a cliffhanger that has me breathless waiting for season 2? Yeah, this show is as perfect as TV gets as far as I'm concerned. I devoured it.
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